analenegrace's reviews
447 reviews

Just for the Summer by Abby Jimenez

emotional hopeful reflective tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

I DNF'd the second book in this series, but I loved Part of Your World, so I wanted to give this a try. Honestly, I don't see myself being an Abby Jimenez reader going forward. 

The romance in this book was adorable. Unfortunately, there were character issues that were just so frustrating. First, Justin. He was insanely perfect in an annoying way. He seemed to do the right thing constantly, had great relationships with everyone, and dealt with everything perfectly. He was sweet and romantic, but I think his character did not feel like a real main character because he was just such a perfect guy. 

Now Emma...  I don't think Emma made a singular choice in this book ever. She never decided how she felt about things ever. People told her how to feel constantly, and it was supposed to come off like she was getting advice, but Maddy and Justin just told her how to feel and what to do. I hoped the third-act breakup and time jump would deal with this, but it didn't. The only thing I liked about that was that she didn't apologize for leaving when she did because she needed to. 

Finally, Amber and Neil. Genuinely WTF?  The reveal of Amber as the Amber from the first book was ridiculous. How did her grandparents never know? I know how the foster care system works. How did she not get placed with them or become aware of them through the court system? I hated that because it made no sense and felt like this incredibly ridiculous twist. 

This book was not for me, and I think Part of Your World was a fluke because I have not enjoyed her other work. 

We Could Be Heroes by Philip Ellis

emotional funny hopeful slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

One of my must-read authors blurbed this book, so I was excited when my local library got a physical copy. Unfortunately, it was a bit of a letdown. A lot is happening in this book, and it is shorter, so it gets convoluted in the third act. 

This is a bit of Chris Evans fan fiction, which I greatly enjoyed. Celebrity romances can be very hit or miss, but the rom-com aspect was charming. Our MCs, Patrick (Evans) and Will, come from very different lives and experiences, with Will doing drag and Patrick being an actor in a Captain America-style movie series. They have a bit of an instant-love situation and are forced to hide their relationship because of Patrick's career, which is

the eventual cause of their third act breakup

, which I thought was pretty well-written with both characters taking accountability for their mistakes and choices. 

A series of flashbacks told how Patrick's movie character, Captain Kismet, was created by a couple in a

lavender marriage in 1949.

At first, I was SUPER confused by why this was included, although it eventually made sense. If this book had been a bit longer, the history tie-in could have been super interesting, but with the short length, both storylines lost steam because of each other. Also, I am mad

they essentially fridged Eleanor...

. 

Finally, I think this book takes a critical political lens through drag and Hollywood queer representation. Will experiences protestors and hate crimes, and he and his fellow queens stage a counter-protest to make their voices heard and have to essentially force the police to act against the people who did the hate crime. Similarly, Patrick is being forcibly closeted by his morality clause and manager (WHOSE A LESBIAN...) He chooses to come out publicly and be a member of the community rather than an ally. 

That ties in with my final criticism. Women in this book felt like they were there to assist the plot and didn't have much characterization. I understand this book's focus on gay men and drag queens, but particularly making his agent a lesbian who wanted to closet him and set up that bathroom scene made me very uncomfortable. Even Will's sister and Audra were just there to move the plot without much agency. 

Best Line: "Love was, fundamentally, an act of perception. I see you. I know you. Don't think I haven't noticed and remembered every last thing about you." 

Heartwaves by Anita Kelly

emotional funny hopeful fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

Anita Kelly, you have once again slayed me with your writing! 

This book is full of emotion, love, and tenderness; I adore it so much! Mae and Dell are incredible characters that capture a full spectrum of experiences. Both are non-binary and generally identify as queer. It starts as a bit of a grumpy-sunshine situation but quickly becomes a beautiful friendship-turned-relationship. I really appreciated Kelly's depiction of polyamory

, even if they eventually decide not to pursue a hinge-style relationship.

 

I am a great lover of indie bookstores (shout out my 2nd home, Blue Cypress Books in New Orleans), and the one Mae opens sounds iconic. I appreciated that Kelly showcased the tough parts of opening a small business since it's very much a brave task! 

I will read anything Anita Kelly writes and I was so excited to see the little bits of the Moonies and Nashville Love series in this book!!!!

Best Line: "Letting yourself be happy, doing what feels right for you, is queer joy. And queer joy is always a revolution." 

The Friend Zone Experiment by Zen Cho

emotional funny hopeful reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an e-arc of this book! 

I really enjoyed this book. While it had a lot going on, it handled it all quite well! 

Typically, more girl-boss millennial MCs both me, but Renee was a really compelling MC, and I thought her emotional journey and growth during this book were super well-written; she has to come to terms with what she wants out of her career and relationships (with men and family), and in this, she had to make some pretty hard decisions. Ket was a good love interest, but I found Renee's POV more appealing. His head was hard to get into. 

Plot-wise, Ket and Renee's family problems, which

became intertwined professionally

, were written with much care toward family dynamics, commitments, gender roles, and queerness. Renee's were, again, more appealing, even though the major mystery was on Ket's side of things. 

I have two major criticisms of this book: first, I think some of the writing was a little choppy, and people didn't use contractions, which is a major pet peeve of mine; second, I think the ending was a little rushed, and I would have liked to see a bit more at the end. 

The Bruising of Qilwa by Naseem Jamnia

adventurous emotional tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

This was a very beautifully written historical fantasy written by a Persian author coming to terms with their own history, which I think is really fantastic. Their post-note, in particular, made some of the choices taken in this story make a lot of sense. 

This was quite fast-paced, with time jumps to move the story along. I think it might have been that the audiobook narrator was pretty monotone, but sometimes, I would lose who was speaking at certain times.  

Altogether a remarkable story, although I think the characters could have been flushed out more as they felt a bit one note at times. 

The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros

emotional hopeful

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

As this is a classic, I won't be giving it a star rating. 

This gorgeously written coming-of-age novel is great to listen to as the author narrates it herself. Through its vignettes, this book tells the story of a young girl growing up in the world around her and the choices and sacrifices she has to make. It is a poignant story that stands the test of time. 

Reverie by Ryan La Sala

adventurous emotional slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

This was a cute story with some fun, fantastical elements, but it was just so slow that I lost interest a few times. It was a great audiobook for doing chores. Also, there was some weird sexualization of the teenage girls that just read a little out of place for this book. 

An Unkindness of Ghosts by Rivers Solomon

adventurous dark emotional hopeful tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

Rivers Solomon's writing style is so captivating, making their books sometimes impossible to put down. I really enjoyed the shorter works I'd read by them, and this full-length novel is absolutely fantastic as well. It had fantastic twists and turns that I didn't expect, keeping me on the edge of my seat. 

Gender and race are both huge factors in this book, and I appreciated Solomon's attention to detail and use of these aspects of one's identity to explore this futuristic world. The world of Matilda is written well, with such attention to historical detail that it makes the impact of the plantation America on this ship evident. Solomon does not pull any punches with both racism and misogyny, and I was only left wondering how Matilda got to this place, but it was honestly a very interesting choice to leave that unknown to the characters and the readers. 

Aster was sometimes hard to read from, honestly my only criticism. I understand she was somewhere on the autistic spectrum and being written that way, but it was still frustrating at times with how she would communicate and act with others. Her relationship with Theo was really well-written, with all of the barriers and factors that prevent them from honestly ever being on clear footing with each other.

The ending worked so well, with Aster's

return to Earth

and while I wanted more, of course, it felt so grounded in its ending that I understood why they chose to end it where they did. 

Solomon is quickly becoming a favorite author of mine. Their writing is just so profoundly compelling and beautiful. 

Strange Folk by Alli Dyer

tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.25

This was a fairly interesting book with a compelling plot, but at the end of the day I was a little uncomfortable with how white this book was and how it's only POC character was barely there. This type of folk magic is known to be tied to black and particularly native american practices in this region and I found it not well-written that these aspects were left out. So much of these type of cultures are tied to POC and practices that white people have adopted and it does not feel appropriate for a white author, even one who is a part of this folk culture, to write it without the influence of marginalized communities. 

Cuckoo by Gretchen Felker-Martin
Did not finish book. Stopped at 19%.

Honestly really disappointed by this. Manhunt is one of the best books I've read this year, and I can't stop thinking about it, but this was, unfortunately, god-awful. 

Characters kept being described by their race when they weren't white. I think we were told a black character was black at least three times within a few times, and the white characters were not described by their race. Like, we got the straight-up phrase "the black boy said," Who tf does that in 2024...

Also there was only one MC of color and she was immediately racismed and I didn't feel like dealing with that for the rest of the book. She was also the only fat character, and like, OKAY, we get she's fat... you don't have to keep telling us...

These kids were so disgustingly horny, and the reviews made it seem like it would get so much worse, and that just seemed SO unnecessary. Apparently, there is an IT-style orgy, and I do not need that. Manhunt worked because the characters were adults...

Maybe other people will like this, but this is absolutely not for me.